False Utopia: Lurking Shadows
Regrouping Plunk. Plunk. That was the only sound that could be heard in this dark cave. The sound of dripping water. However, images began to fade in, flickering images of individuals. When they spoke, they're voices crackled with static. "So he's here?" A male voice. This image was of a young man with spiky hair. "The silver hair?" A female voice, Lynterria, giggled. "Ask him yourself. His image shall arrive in a just a moment. "Oh...." Immediately, after that was said, the said man's image re-appeared before them, right beside the one who had first encountered him (at least in this state). He had his hands folded behind his back, a rather casual lean in his standing position. That image's eyes looked around at each of the members. "...did I miss anything?" He continued, a non-chalant tone to his voice. "Of course not." Lynterria said cheerfully at Taiki's arrival. "The other two haven't arrived yet. Oh, speak of the devil." A slighly bulky image flickered into view before them. Even those the facial features of all these images could not be seen, their eyes were perfectly visible. However, this man's was not. It was obvious, at least to the three present, he was wearing his hood. Another image, a young girl, flickered to his side almost immediately. "Yo, Sesshōmaru." The spiky-haired image off the to left called cheerfully. "Jōchō." Sesshōmaru's voice spoke the spiky-haired man's name, and his voice was quite cheerful. His eyes scanned the room. "I see we're one short." "Yeah, my brother couldn't make it this time." Jōchō said. He sounded resigned to this. "It's that again is it?" "Yes. It'll be suppressed again soon. He's never one to lose himself permanently." "True." Sesshōmaru cleared his throat. "As you all know by now, we have guest in our midst. It would be best to introduce yourselves you two." He pointed at Jōchō and the girl standing at his side. The spiky haired image chuckled. "Alright. Newcomer, I'm Jōchō, Jōchō Itonami." To the side of Sesshōmaru, the girl spoke. "I'm Shinsetsu." "Quite a unique group...." Taiki remarked, eyeing the appearance of the young girl particularly. It was odd; to think that such a young person would be involved with a group such as this... what had happened? "I would've never known there'd be children amongst the masses." "Watch it bub." Lynterria said, pretending to sound offended. "Kids or not, I could probably take you on." "I bet you could!" Taiki said laughingly, in order not to offend the girl. "Alright, you'll have plenty of time to befriend Taiki later. Taiki, I'm sure you have been wondering why my group is here, haven't you?" "Mhm...." At the statement, Taiki's eyes shifted towards the rest of them, more particularly the one that had just addressed him. Sesshōmaru cleared his throat. "Our goal is to destroy the entire Soul Society as it is, and reshape it into our vision of Utopia." Wind blew inside the cave as he said these words, creating a whistling sound. Utopia. It was a word that he himself had constantly juggled around in his head. The very word once again shot through his mind like a bullet that had embedded itself comfortably within his skull. He allowed silence to reign for a moment, before bringing himself to speak once more. "...that is quite a fearsome and seemingly impossible goal. And yet... it is quite the chivalrous one." It was his own personal desire to bring forth this utopia, to bring out the truth that the Soul Society was hypocritically known for. He had seen enough ignorance... ...therefore, were his and Sesshōomaru's goals the same? Hand-in-hand? "It's a goal that we have a very real possibility of completing." Sesshōmaru said confidently. "Everything we need is right here in this dimension. Or should I say, every''one we need is right here in this dimension."'' "Every...one?" "After conducting several experiments with the spell we've been using, we've found out it's not strong enough. To use it, we need a different type of power." Though his face was not visible, it was clear he was grinning. "It's a power you live with every single day." Taiki quirked an eyebrow. "I happen to live with many powers. Which one are you referring to?" He asked, a bit playfully. "Miharu Kurosaki." Abruptly, Taiki's eyes widened. "H....her? You... you can't be serious..." "Relax, we target not her life." Sesshōmaru said reassuringly. "We merely intend to make use of her Zanpakutō." "It's not that...." Taiki turned his head away, eyes narrowing slightly. "To be looking for that kind of power... it has yet to develop to its full potential. To grab ahold of it while it isn't ready is quite a a risk..." He raised a finger to scratch his nose. "Oh, and before you say it... that's what she said." He couldn't help but chuckle a little at the innuendo joke. Sesshōmaru and Jōchō chuckled, but Shinsetsu didn't. "I don't get it." She said. "I'll explain it to you later Shinsetsu." Sesshōmaru said, looking at her, then looking at Taiki again. "Taiki, as you said, it is indeed a risk. But her power is merely meant to balance with the spell we're using. They will balance each other out, so there should be no problems with this Operation. My only question now is...are you with us?" "I can answer that if you can answer me this..." Taiki's gaze became more serious. "How far will this take us? How far will we have to go before we can complete this goal?" "Depending on what you mean. The preparations for this operation are already complete. The spell circle and incantation have been formed and created. All we need now is Miharu's..."cooperation." In other words, there wouldn't be far to go. Sure, their goals were one and the same... but the ways of achieving such were completely different. In order to ensure that his own plan was safely executed, he would have to wait a little bit longer... "All righty, then... I suppose I don't have any problems. I will join you." "Excellent." Sesshōmaru said, clearly delighted by Taiki's agreeable attitude. "For as long as you are in this group, Lynterria is your partner." "Eh...." Once again, the silver-haired man quirked an eyebrow in Lynterria's direction. "I don't got any problems with that. She seems quite...bearable." "You'll be singin' a different tune soon." Jōchō said. Lynterria blew a raspberry. "Shut up, Jōchō." "I think that's enough." Sesshōmaru said, a little sternly. "Meeting dismissed. Lynterria, meet up with Taiki later. I feel a presence approaching him." "K." "Oh, boy... who in the hell is it now...?" Taiki muttered, his arms folded across his chest. "Hope it's not one of the family..." All the images faded away including Taiki, who stood up in time to see that Adela was walking up to him. "Oh, hey, Adela!" Immediately, Taiki smiled, moving forth in order to embrace her. Though his lunge was quick, the arms that wrapped around his wife were gentle and comforting. "I thought you were getting too busy for me. How's everything going?" He asked gently. Adela was surpised at the embrace she had gotten from her husband, but did not complain. She hadn't seen him in awhile, it was quote possible he had missed her. She chuckled. "Everything's a headache. My new job keeps me moving all over the place. Thank whatever God is out there that I'm a Hollow, or I would probably have died from overwork." "Awww.... then I'm gonna give you a good ol' massage once we get home..." Taiki said gently, releasing her slowly. "Would ya like that?" "That sound's good." She said grinning. They started to walk. "So how are the kids?" Taiki moved to grasp one of Adela's hands tightly. His other hand fixed itself within his pocket. "Oh, they're fine as ever!" He declared, clearly mirthful talking about them. "They're certainly developing, aren't they? Gone're the little naive girls we used to know... now they're slowly beginning to progress into a more mature mind. I'm quite proud of that..." "Aoi, a mature mind? I find that hard to believe." Adela chuckled. "How's your little sister? I haven't seen her for awhile." "To be honest? She's been hanging out at the Injiki's house. Where else?" Taiki shrugged. "Though, now that Kibou's old enough to leave the house, they're probably going other places." "Not Midoriko, though it's nice to hear that. I meant Mihara." "Ah, her! Last time I checked, she was at the home with her friend Ezra. Quite a hard-eyed fellow, I might add... he didn't seem to appreciate my presence too much." Of course, it was expected. He wasn't exactly the most open and honest people out of the Kurosaki family. Even now, the kindness he was showing his wife was nothing more than deception. Adela placed an arm around her husband. "Well, it's good to be back for now. I get to spend time with my husband before going back to that hell of a job." "And I get to make my wife feel good before she goes back to that hell of a job..." Taiki answered, smirking as she let go of his hand. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Problems in Paradise Back on the homefront, Aoi and Kyūi were out on the lawn, Aoi having several strange skeletal ghosts whirling around her. It was a rather strange display, at least if it were anyone else but Kyuui watching. However, it was a normal sighting for the white-haired girl. She sat, her back leaning against her hands. Her legs were crossed and outstretched in a rather relaxed position. Her eyes watched over her sister as the effect of her abilities were swirling around her in a sort of tornado. It was something that both of them had been fighting to achieve up to this point. Bankai... She twirled her blades around, and the skeletal ghosts seemed to dance around her. "What do you think, Onē-chan? It's pretty right?" "It's gonna take more than good looks, when it actually comes down to using it... but, yeah." Kyuui commented. "But, yeah... pretty... in a creepy kind of way. "Wanna see what it can do?" Aoi asked. "Sure..." Aoi thrust her blade forward, pointing it at a tree, and the ghosts shot forward at it, colliding with the tree and seemingly seeping right into it. Immediately the tree began to rot, it's leaves falling and branches weakening, cracking as they fell. At this, Kyuui felt a slight twinge of regret for saying yes. She switched her leg positions, pulling them up to her chest and embracing her arms around them. Her eyes looked on, sighting out the bark as it crumbled and fell apart under the power. "You increased the age of the tree...?" She guessed. "Or... was it something to do with the poison that your Shikai wields?" "Poison. The ghosts I conjured are made up entirely of poison. One touch is enough to cause even Grandpa to faint." Aoi said proudly. Kyuui smiled a little. "Sure you can prove that?" "You wanna see Grandpa faint?" Aoi asked, surprised. "Not that I want to... I was just curious to see if you could prove it..." Kyuui answered. She decided to lay on her back, folding her hands behind her head. The grass blades across her back felt surprisingly comfortable. Her legs returned to their crossed position. "AHA-JII!" Aoi called out into the house. Ahatake came out the house slowly. "Aoi, why the heck are you yelling you're gonna wake the neighbors. "Aha-jii, it's the middle of the afternoon." "Some people sleep after lunch. Now what is it you need?" Aoi tiwrled her sword and the skeletal ghost formed. "Shakes hands with 'im." "Uh...alright." Ahatake extended his hand to the ghosts, and no sooner had he touched it than he dropped like a coconut. "I told you." Aoi said, her tone slightly smug. "...." Kyuui could only stare on in slight disbelief at the fallen Ahatake. The first thing that had crossed her mind: "Wasn't he aware that was part of her...?" The second was the very fact that it could affect even strong opponents! It was obviously quite a formidable power. "Very good.... but surely that can't be the only effect it would have....?" She questioned. However, Ahatake jumped right back up and he was laughing. "Yeah, like that'd actually manage to get me." He said, smirking. "I heard your guys' conversation from in the house, I already knew what you we-" However, he never finished that sentence, because his eyes rolled back and he began foaming at the mouth. Once again, he dropped to the ground. "GAH!" Immediately, Kyuui snapped out of her lying position and ran over to him, hands over her mouth. "O...Ojii!" She blurted. "Aoi, what did you do?!" She couldn't help it - the guy was foaming at the mouth! She couldn't help if her voice sounded a bit frantic because of that.... "Y-you said prove it!" Aoi said, panicking slightly. "Obā-chan!!!" She called into the door for Megami. "Ojī-chan's down!" A sigh came in response. "All right, girls...." No sooner after that was said, Megami immediately stepped out, looking a bit weary. "What seems to be the proble--" Then, her eyes fell on Ahatake. "....GAH!" Immediately, Megami wasted no time in re-appearing at her husband's side, hands going onto his chest quickly. "What happened to him?!" She demanded, eyes concentrated on the healing process. Her hands began to glow with her own spiritual energy.... "Well, I said my poison could make Ojī-chan faint and Onē-chan said prove it so I did. So it's kind of her fault." "....I'm going to have a talk with both of you after I'm through." Megami spoke sternly, making Kyuui flinch a little at the tone. "For now, it's best to hope that you didn't do too much damage." "It shouldn't. He only touched the poison." Aoi said, sound sure. "If it had done too much damage, he'd have wound up like that tree over there." She pointed at the tree that she had killed. It was then that Taiki and Adela, with Adela still having an arm wrapped around the silver-haired man, walked into the outside, their presence known by the opening of the door that led to the area. "Hello, oh daughters and step-mother of mine!" He said cheerfully. "How goes every--" Then his eyes fell on his father, catching the nervous glance of Kyuui as well. "....oh, boy. Tou-san drink too much?" "No, Tō-san, I kind of poisoned him."'' Aoi said nervously. "....you poisoned my father." Slowly, Taiki turned his eyes towards the daughter that dared to speak up. Releasing himself gently from Adela's grip, he stuffed his hands into his pockets and walked slowly towards her. "Not to mention your grandfather... and for what reason... may I ask?" His tone held a conversational, but this time it held the hint of intimidation. "Well,IsaidmypoisoncouldmakeOjī-chanfaintandOnē-chansaidproveit,andIdid,soit'sallherfault!" Aoi said all this very fast and very nervously. "I....I said no such thing!!!" Kyuui blurted, getting increasingly panicked as her father approached the both of them. "I was simply wonder if--" "Good work!" Immediately, Taiki stopped, a rather cheery smile on his face once more, and his eyes squinted into an upside-down U shape. "If you could poison someone as strong as m'dad, you've certainly improved, haven't you?" He commended, turning his head to look in the direction of a rather shocked Megami. Obviously, she was thinking: "He's not concerned at all?!" Ahatake coughed and spluttered before his eyes opened. the foam stopping. "D-damn..." "See? He's fine." Taiki concluded, before he turned off to walk back to Adela's side. Ahatake sat up and sighed. "Remind me not to accept so much as a chip from Aoi anymore." He said, and Aoi chuckled nervously. "Now, then...." Immediately, Taiki re-appeared behind Adela, his hands gently placing themselves onto her hips. "Shall we, my dear? I wish not to drain your relaxation time by having you stand so stiffly..." He said, almost in a slightly dramatic manner. The motion made Kyuui blush slightly, but faintly. Adela chuckled, but before she could reply at all, she was tackled into a hug by Aoi. "Kā-chan, you're finally home." Aoi said, wrapping her arms around her mother. She had been so busy with the poison situation she hadn't really noticed. "A bit slow on the uptake Aoi." Adela said, hugging her youngest daughter and they both let go. "So what exactly have you been doing that's kept you away from here?" Aoi asked curiously. "Lots of annoying deliveries to various places all over the Soul Society." Adela replied, the very though of her work made her feel tired. Oh. So she wasn't off fucking another guy... Though the thought would've been hilarious. Taiki pouted a little, having to remove his hands from off of his wife. "They're allowing you free passage into the Soul Society? Don't they still have a "execution on sight" policy when it comes to Hollows?" He asked. "Disappointed they didn't enforce it?" Adela asked. ...wow. She just bypassed his kindness to her to ask such a rather hostile-implying question. If that wasn't the move of a bitch, then he didn't know what was. However, he simply folded his arms across his chest. "You shouldn't be saying that to the person who's willing to lend a helping hand." He replied simply, tilting his head to the side. "What do you mean I shouldn't be saying that?" Adela asked. "I haven't forgotten the various times you tried to kill me. Loving you or not, I don't trust you yet Taiki. No one knows what goes on inside that head of yours." She jabbed his chest gently. Those words brought about an abrupt silence. ".....you...." If Adela looked up, she would've seen Taiki's expression fade away, replaced by one with slight pain swimming in his eyes. "You don't.... trust me?" He managed to repeat her slowly, unable to believe the words. He couldn't believe what he heard; his own wife had told him she didn't trust him. Even after the years they had spent married to one another, she still believed him to be the killer back then? "Not completely. You're not easy to read Taiki." She said, her tone apologetic. Had she actually hurt him? Years....years.... and the only words as his reward was... Not completely. "....whatever." Closing his eyes, Taiki allowed a scowl to cross his face. Promptly, he turned on his heel, pushing her finger away as she did so. "I put my life into this bond... for the children... for you... and this is what I get? What's the point of being married if the trust isn't complete?" That was when the atmosphere was beginning to turn a bit tense; Kyuui held her hands to her mouth, clearly shocked at their words and the turning of tables. What had happened...? Her father began to walk away, his back turned towards all of them. His figure slinked back inside. Adela raised a hand to her head. "Dios mío..." She muttered, and used a Sonído to catch up with him and she gripped his hand. "Taiki, calm down for a moment. From what I recall, you were always annoyed with the me that was so attached you, and trusted you completely? Back when I was younger, I trusted you blindly out of infatuation and it nearly got me killed. Trusting you completely after that is going to take a lot of time, but it doesn't mean it will never happen." She wrapped her arms around him. "Just some more time is all I ask." WHAM! In response, a furious elbow slammed into her face, and she was knocked clear into the wall. "Fuck you...!" Taiki snarled, looking quite livid as he turned to point an accusing finger at her. "I gave you years of time! YEARS! Years I shut off my hatred for you in order to see the better side, and years I spent with you, living a family man's life. But for you to say you still don't trust me... all you're doing is throwing that life's work out the window!!" Immediately, he turned around and walked off. "I'm going to say it again... but only because you've removed that puppy-dog will of yours. Leave me be... I don't need a bitch like you around me." Then, before anything else could happen, he vanished without a word. Adela frowned. The elbow slam she had barely felt, her Hierro guarding against it. The word's however, stung more. "I...was not expecting that." Preparations to be made As Taiki walked, Lynterria materialized next to him. "Now that was harsh Taiki-chan." She said, though her voice sounded as cheerful and bell-like as always and her face was lit up with curiosity. The rage had faded. Taiki simply placed his hands behind his head as he trudged down beside his new partner. "Well, I'm not exactly a nice guy when it comes to her. Though, I'm surprised you saw everything..." He commented, a grin returning to his face once more. "You're my partner, so wherever you are, I won't be far behind." She said, taking off her hood. "What is it you don't like about that woman Taiki-chan? She seems to love you." "I don't love her." Taiki said, closing his eyes. "The marriage... was just something forced upon me by Tou-san, something I had be stuck dealing with. Everytime I spoke up, I would simply get punched in the face for rejecting her. In the few times that I actually did feel somethin' for her, all she did was prove she didn't understand me at all. From that point on, she was nothing but a toy for me to play around with.... too bad I won't get to do that anymore." "You're attitude is just right for this group Taiki-chan." Lynterria said, smiling. "Anyway, it's down to business. Have you been paying attention to the news at all?" "I never really had the time. What happened?" "Apparently, someone attacked this region's guards last night." She pulled out what appeared to be a PDA, but it had many various buttons and attachments that clearly said it wasn't. She pressed one of the outermost buttons and an image of a news reporter popped up. "Once again, we have startling news. Four officers were found unconscious at their stations. There is no serious injury, but when a guard came to, he reported that it was a a young man with silver hair who attacked them. Before he passed out, he heard the child mutter something about an invasion. We ask all residents not to panic, but to please stay alert." The image vanished, and she stowed the PDA away. "That moron...." Taiki frowned disdainfully, even as it was stowed away. "Now the authorities are going to be on high alert sooner than later. Wonderful..." He remarked sarcastically. "We'll just kill the authorities who take action. It's getting time to feed again anyway." Lynterria said confidently. "We have a general idea who it is anyway. He's been a thorn in our side for awhile." "And who would this man be?" "Like us, he's a Taishoku Kokumin." Lynterria said, sighing for the first time. "His name is Seiryoku. He came from the same dimension we did, and has been trying to stop Sesshōmaru since he put this plan in motion." "By himself?" Taiki was clearly surprised, eyes widened. But it wasn't as if he was panicking. "That's quite an impressive feat! How come there aren't any orders to bring him down yet?" "There have been. He's always eluded us. You see, unlike most full-blooded Taishoku Kokumin, he possesses a Zanpakutō. He got it from a Shinigami he devoured." Lynterria licked her lips at the thought. She was hungry. "Daiyaku could probably take him, but every time Seiryoku is spotted, Daiyaku mysteriously vanishes." "Odd..." Taiki commented, folding his arms across his chest. "And do you have any reason of why Daiyaku would do such a thing?" "No. You haven't met Daiyaku yet, but killing is something he loves to do. Vanishing when there's an opportunity to kill really is unlike him." She grinned suddenly. "I'm sure he'll get back in time though. In the meantime, my current mission is to show you exactly what we're going to be using to completely change this world into the Utopia Sesshōmaru desires. Are you interested in seeing?" "I suppose I have to." Taiki said lightly, though quirking an eyebrow at the suggestion of such a possibility. If his and Sesshomaru's goals were still the same.... if he wanted to make sure they were.... there would be no choice but to humor the man. "How will you do such?" She gripped his arm. "This way." She said, and they completely vanished in a blast of black energy, reappearing in the very same cave they're images had appeared in earlier. "You remember this cave I assume?" "How could I not?" Taiki countered, his tone one of amusement. "I just got done visiting it." "Good, good." Lynterria, said, smiling. With a sudden movement, she cut into his arm, the cut was shallow, but blood splattered onto the center of the cave floor. Licking the blood from her blade, Lynterria sheathed it. "Eh?" As the blood was spilled onto the cave floor, Taiki could immediately and safely guess what it was for. Anyone could guess that the blood was a necessary thing in order for the summoning of whatever... but by his own blood, it was most likely that he would be the only one to experience its full effects. Lynterria chuckled as the floor began to glow bright, and a large, pentagram like design was shown. There were several circles on the pentagram, and a new one faded into existence. "That, Taiki-chan, is your spot." She pointed at it, the circle where his name was forming. Shrugging, Taiki decided to oblidge and humor the girl. Calmly, with his hands into his pockets, he stepped into the spot where the light seemed to grow in brightness, patiently waiting. As he stood there, the circle began to glow and he felt a slight warmth. Lynterra grinned. "Great! It's "recognized" you now." "And now....?" Lynterria cheerfully latched onto Taiki's back. "That's all I was told to do at the moment." She said, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his stomach. "What say you we get married?" She asked, jokingly. That was it? Even as the girl happily latched onto his back, all Taiki did in return was wrap his arms around her legs to support her. Well, that was awfully easy! "I don't think so...." He commented, smiling a little. His own tone was his own brand of teasing as well. "You're not bad to look at, but still a bit too young in my tastes." "I'll have you know I'm not much younger than you." She said in mock huffiness. "Taishoku Kokumin age slower than other spiritual beings." She grinned, and she jumped off his back. "I can assume you're going home now, so I'm gonna offer you some advice. Apologize to your wife." She put emphasis on the last words. "Even if you don't like her, it won't hurt to string her along for awhile. Especially since you've got those kiddies." Home... In truth, he actually wasn't thinking about going back home just yet. He didn't want Adela to think he just had some sort of mood swing (because that only applied to women.... right?) He wanted to stay away for a little more, just to ensure that Adela would think he would be truly mad at her. "Actually, I'm not going back just yet... don't wanna make my sudden re-entry too suspicious..." The white-haired man said truthfully, shrugging his shoulders. "To my knowledge Taiki-chan, everything you do makes them suspicious." The girl said knowingly. "Your father at the very least." "Tch.... paranoid freaks, aren't they?" Taiki scoffed. "But, either way, I'd prefer if Adela was thinking that I was mad for a considerable amount of time, wishing to blow off some steam." "Sounds like a plan." Lynterria said, clapping her hands together once. "One final piece of advice. Watch out for Seiryoku. Young boy with short silver hair." She turned on the spot, leaving Taiki in the darkness. "Yeah...." Closing his eyes, Taiki turned on his heel and walked away from his partner, white hair billowing behind him. So basically, it was a "clone" of him running around and causing trouble. Too easy to spot, if he ever did... yet, he had high doubts he would, so what would it matter? Standing on the roof of the cave was the very boy that Lynterria had just warned Taiki about. He was watching intently as Taiki left the cave, his face blank. "So...he's the newest addition." The boy thought. "I never did think they'd go as far to recruit a Shinigami. But he is the one who visited that dimension all those years ago. I should have known they'd take interest in him." As he exited the cave, Taiki displayed his usual sign of casual acting as he walked out of the cave, the wind billowing his hair to the front ever so slightly. He thrust his hands within his pockets, eyes drifting about constantly. He would have to think about what had happened. Maybe it wasn't yet needed to expect something right then and there. After all, if his own family were smart enough not to trust him, then how would it be any different from these strange people? He could be patient... he continued to walk out, drifting onto these thoughts for a little more... Then he stopped in his tracks.... and sighed. "All right, man. I know you're there. You can c'mon out, now." "Hm.." The boy vanished from the top of the cave, and reappeared in front of Taiki. "So your senses are strong enough to sense my even while I was suppressing my energy. You have my compliments." "Thank you." Taiki took the comment respectfully, a small smile returning to his face. He eyed the boy over.... silver hair... rather business-like clothing... was this Seiryoku? And he had been the only one to sense the man's energy.... "I suppose you were taking this as an opportunity to spy on us, eh?" "Yes. But not to check on the information the girl was giving you. I have a pretty good understanding of their plans already." He moved a hand through his hair for a moment. "I came to look in on you." "Of course!" Taiki's voice rose, its tone changing to that of a mockingly conversational tune. "Little old me.... everyone wants little old me around these days...." His gait was rather easy-going and relaxed, despite the fact that the man that stood in front of him was a potent threat to the group. "And what, pray tell, would you gain by attempting to do that? The rest of them may have been careless enough to allow you some ground... but are you so sure that's the same thing that's going to happen here?" Seiryoku's finger twitched for a brief moment. He chuckled. "Are you actually saying you're going to take me on?" "Oh, nonono.... don't get me wrong, I should be fighting you because of our positions." Taiki insisted, raising his hands up calmly. "But, I was simply wondering if you could figure more about me as if I was one of them. Tell me, Seiryoku-san.... can you read me, even as we stand here? If not, then you're better off not worrying about me at all." "I'm not a profiler Taiki Kurosaki." Seiryoku said. "But one thing that I can tell is you seem to have your own purposes for joining Sesshōmaru's group. You have a similar goal to his, I can tell, but you're in that group to observe aren't you. Although you fully intend to act as if you're allied with them. Am I right?" "Hmm...." Taiki pretended to think for a moment, before shaking his head. "Nope! Guess again." The man had gotten it partially right... but not completely. Of course, he wasn't going to bluntly tell him that. He wanted to toy with him a bit more before any true intentions were revealed... "That's all I'm getting from you." Seiryoku replied. "You aren't an easy one to read, Taiki Kurosaki." His finger twitched yet again. "Hm?" That's when Taiki looked at the twitching appendage for a moment. "Why's your finger twitchin' like that, Seiryoku-san?" He asked curiously, tilting his head to the side. "Miniature seizure? Cramps? Or... are you just itchin' to draw your sword on me?" At the latter statement, he removed one hand from his pocket, waiting for the man's answer. "Neither." Seiryoku replied. "I am merely on my guard should you attack while I take my leave." "While you take your leave? You're not going to attack me? Finish me off here and now?" Taiki pressured, cocking an eyebrow. His voice was becoming more and more challenging towards the man as he spoke. "Are you trying to goad me into a fight?" Seiryoku replied. "You know there's no point in that, especially while you are unable to move." His finger twitched yet again. Unable to move? Taiki decided to test that theory. He made the movement of grasping the hilt of his sword, but he didn't fully execute the action just yet. He was only making the motion to do so. Seiryoku had just clued him in on a possible ability; if he wanted to test it out, he'd have to make the first move. If it failed for some odd reason, then he would know... Seiryoku made a small gesture, pointing a Taiki's feet. Taiki looked down. And he knew what he meant. Crystals, glistening like diamonds, had now surrounded his ankles. They were like roots to a tree; hooking him into the ground like a stubborn tree and refusing to let go. His eyes widened slightly. Kido? He thought to himself, taking his hand off of the hilt of his blade. "Zanpakutō." Seiryoku corrected, guessing the man's thoughts. "As I said, I'll be taking my leaves." He began to glisten a light green, and then completely faded, being the second person today to leave Taiki standing alone. "Interesting!" Taiki's grin grew even wider, even as he unsheathed his sword fully. Though the ability didn't have much put into it, at least by his standards, it was as if Seiryoku was presenting a challenge to him. Pointing his sword tip to the ground, he slammed it into the crystals. The force was enough to shatter them into fragments. This gave him the strength to rip his feet out of the trap, though with minor cuts. "No wonder they take him as a threat...." He commented, sheathing his blade again. "Seiryoku... you have my attention." He remarked to himself. Without further adue, he turned and walked off, once again maintaining that non-chalant gait. The End Previous Story | Next Story